1. Technical Field
The present invention is directed toward exercise equipment and more particularly toward a collapsible abdominal exerciser.
2. Background Art
The fitness craze which has captivated the attention of ever increasing numbers of people in the United States and throughout the world has spawned an endless array of exercise equipment, some of it beneficial, much of it merely a gimmick of one sort or another. One particular area of concentration for manufacturers and promoters of exercise equipment has been abdominal exercisers. The majority of these abdominal exercisers are based upon the traditional sit-up. These abdominal exercisers generally promote themselves with claims of a quick and easy path to the illusive washboard stomach.
The age old form of abdominal exercise is the traditional sit-up. Sit-ups are generally performed by a person laying upon their back with their knees bent and their feet flat on the floor. The person then contracts the abdominal muscles to raise his/her head off of the ground. There are numerous variations on this basic exercise, which include varying the placement of the person's hands from behind the neck to crossed over the front of the persons chest and raising the shoulders only a few inches off the ground (commonly known as a "crunch") to touching the forehead to the knees. One common criticism of traditional sit-ups is the ease with which a person can cheat. For example, a person can throw his hands forward during execution of the sit-up to provide momentum which eases the lifting burden on the abdominal muscles. In addition, when executing a "crunch" sit-up, there is no objective indication to the person when he or she has completed a full sit-up. There is a known tendency during execution of a set of sit-ups to not fully complete sit-ups toward the end of the set, thereby lessening the effectiveness of the exercise.
One other common problem in performing sit-ups is strain or discomfort to the user's spine. Prolonged improper form in executing sit-ups can lead to chronic neck and back discomfort.
Finally, traditional sit-ups do not adequately concentrate the workout on the desired abdominal muscles. It has been found that the most effective sit-up is performed when the person's chin abuts his or her chest. However, even with the person's hands behind his head this a difficult if not impossible position to maintain and therefore traditional sit-ups fail to properly focus the workout.
There have been numerous abdominal exercisers sold over the years which attempt to address some of the problems with conventional sit-ups discussed above. However, the abdominal exercisers for addressing these problems have been found to be seriously wanting because they fail to address all of these concerns and therefore are at best simply providing inefficient and unfocused exercise, or at worse fail to provide adequate support for the user's spine and therefore create the potential for chronic discomfort for the user. In addition, these abdominal exercisers are often too bulky to be readily transported, thereby preventing many traveling users from enjoying their limited benefits while they are away from home.
The present invention is directed toward overcoming one or more of the problems discussed above.